Day 11

Today is a simple day. It’s a day to focus on being gentle with yourself. It’s a day to focus on rest, relaxation, and good ol’ sleep.

Sleep is something near and dear to my heart. Too few people take sleeping seriously, and I’m not talking about new parents. I get that there are times when we are deprived of our sleep and we can’t do much about it. But those dreadful cliches like:

I’LL SLEEP WHEN I’M DEAD.

Man, that one kills me (pun possibly intended). There are very few things in the world that I hate, but that saying is one of them. That awful phrase has polluted our thinking and has put pressure on us to constantly grind instead of finding balance, recharging, and healing.

There are some key things you should know about sleep if you aren’t already in the fan club. I’ll keep it brief:

Go to bed before midnight, preferably around 10. Your body heals from 10pm-2am. Every hour you sleep before midnight is worth two after.

You can’t catch up on sleep. Sorry, but it doesn’t work like that. Sleep 7-9 hours and do it every night or shave off some years of your life (and sanity).

If you have trouble sleeping there are a bunch of things you can do. I’ll give you four:

Make your room a Zen space. Take the TV out. Dim the lights. Make it peaceful with no technological temptations.

Use lavender or chamomile essential oils.

Don’t look at any screens (phone, tablet, computer, TV) at least 90 minutes before bed. (Pick up a book instead.)

Computer screens emulate the sun, but our bodies aren't meant to be taking in sunlight after the sun goes down. Install f.lux on your computer. It emulates a warmer lighting at night.

Our sleep greatly affects the way we feel in our bodies. Your body does important healing as you rest. So sleep, dear one. Please sleep.

Sleep early, sleep long, and keep it consistent. You will start feeling better about yourself immediately.